Jekyll Island Eyes Conservation Law Change

Associated Press

Updated: 1 year ago.

The governing board for Jekyll Island is proposing a big change to the 42-year-old Georgia law that guarantees the coastal state park remain vastly undeveloped. A 1971 law limits hotels, golf courses and other amenities to 35 percent of the island's land area. But there has been heated debate over how large Jekyll Island actually is and how it should be measured. (Photo Courtesy of theunquietlibrarian via Flickr.)

The governing board for Jekyll Island is proposing a big change to the 42-year-old Georgia law that guarantees the coastal state park remain vastly undeveloped.

Jekyll Island officials and conservation groups weighing in on the island's first new master plan in 17 years have been arguing for months over how much room is left for future development.

A 1971 law limits hotels, golf courses and other amenities to 35 percent of the island's land area. But there has been heated debate over how large Jekyll Island actually is and how it should be measured.

The Jekyll Island Authority's board voted last Monday on a draft plan that would ask state lawmakers swap the percentage with a fixed acreage for development. Conservationists say the idea has merit but they still have concerns.